With the work on the script for Napoleon Stone and the Fragments of Fate now underway by Pete Rogers we figured it was time to reveal the full colour teaser poster as created by Roy Huteson Stewart. I’m sure you will agree that it’s a lovely piece of art.
The comic will be released digitally later in the year and will be collected in the Tales of the Fallen anthology, along with several other comics featuring characters from the Unseen Shadows universe.
So welcome everyone to the new Unseen Shadows website. From here I hope to keep you all up to date on all the news spinning out of the Unseen Shadows universe of which the Fallen Heroes novel and it’s upcoming follow-up, Forgotten Warriors, is a part. As well as news on the novels there will be updates on some of the other spin-off titles in the works. The site is still being worked on so look out for changes on a daily basis.
This will also be your one shop site for picking up Comics, Books,CD’s and more from the Unseen Shadows Universe.
As this is the first time I’m really pushing the Unseen Shadows Universe I thought I would do a small post to explain the idea behind it all.
Originally Fallen Heroes was called Unseen Shadows but the more I worked on the story the more I felt that the title was a little too overarching to fit one book. I knew I was going to tell this one huge adventure spread over three books and so Unseen Shadows became the overall theme for that story.
Now with the ongoing work to expand the world and characters I’ve created via the mediums of comics, audio and live action it made sense to bring the term ‘Unseen Shadows’ more to the forefront. I know a lot of people, myself included sometimes, still refer to everything involved with the project as Fallen Heroes but in truth everything being worked on is part of the Unseen Shadows universe. It was one of the reasons I decided to launch this new website to try to reinforce that message.
The really exciting thing for me is how the spin-off work has affected me as I work on the second book in the trilogy, Forgotten Warriors. I found myself subconsciously referencing events in the spin-off scripts as if they were canon and then the thought occurred to me ‘Why don’t I just make them canon’. So now every member of the creative team knows that their material is 100% a part of the Unseen Shadows universe and not just a nice little side story with no impact on the events surrounding it. The spin-offs expand and enhance the characters lives and relationships within the novels. Although the books and the spin offs can be read and enjoyed independently of each other you will get more insights into the characters by experiencing all the stories across the Unseen Shadows universe. At least that is the plan we are all working towards. You want to know more about the how the Reverend was trained to become the man we see in Fallen Heroes then you Cy Dethan’s The Reverend: Wrath of God comic. If you’ve ever wondered how did a decorated solider like Clancy become a mercenary then Dan Thompson’s Clancy Wallencheck: Band of Butchers is for you. Desperate to learn about the inner working of the Icarus Foundation? Alan White’s Tales of the Fallen: Empire of Blood audio drama is the place to begin your education.
Well first up we will releasing four(maybe five) one-shot comics, based on characters introduced in the Fallen Heroes novel, in a digital only format and then to collect them as a anthology entitled ‘Tales of the Fallen’, which will be printed for launch later in 2011. Of we have the second issue of the comic adaptation which is being worked on as I type this.
I think if you a follower of the independant UK comic scene you will recongise some of the names already involved. They are all people I have a lot of respect for and am very happy to have them be part of what we are trying to do. Someone suggested to me after seeing the list of those involved that this team was ‘The Expendables of Indie Comics’ which bought a smile to my face as well as the team. A far as I know the team have no plans to overthrow any Latin American dictators any time soon.
So far involved in the comic side of things we have
Richmond Clements
Cy Dethan
Vicky Stonebrigde
Pete Rogers
Conor Boyle
Rob Carey
Dan Thompson
Martin Conaghan
Steve Penfold
Nic Wilkinson
Roy Huteson Stewart
Paul McLaren
As time goes on I’ll be introducing you to some of the other teams involved in expanding the Unseen Shadows universe.
“I’ll wait for the audio version”
It was that phrase I heard years ago when someone was interested in buying the novel but only as an audio book that lodged the idea in the back of my head. It was one of reasons I sought out David Ault to do an audio version of Fallen Heroes. I was always drawn to the concept that whatever was your medium of choice there was a means by which you could experience the story I was trying to tell.
To be honest a large share of how this came about should go to Nic Wilkinson, who always had this grand scheme of spin offs and expanding the Unseen Shadows universe for probably about two years now (I’m sure in a past list she was an evil genius). Being able to bounce ideas off her and getting her input has been invaluable in making this all work. She also knocked my head together with C Dethan’s who I been skirting around the idea of asking do a spin off comic for some time. There was never a plan to do more than one spin-off comic but Cy coming aboard to do the Reverend spin-off comic really opened the door and suddenly I found myself being emailed by loads of creative folk wanted to know how they could get involved. It also showed me that the only boundaries to what I’m trying to achieve are those I impose on myself. Doing this new website is a way to help me embrace the idea that anything is possible.
I’m very lucky to be working with so many talented and great people. I’ve already learnt a hell of a lot from them and I hope this trend continues.
So be brave and take a step into the Unseen Shadows and I’ll see you on the other side.
Barry Nugent, author of Unseen Shadows: Fallen Heroes
It’s become a bit of a mantra now but whenever anyone finishes reading Fallen Heroes the novel my first question is ‘Who was your favorite character?’ This questions springs from the fact that the book deals with several main characters and it’s nice to know who readers were rooting for. I don’t know if I should be worried that the majority of those who read the book picked the Reverend as their fave character.
Now I don’t want to say too much about the character other than he really is not the sort of man you want to be on the wrong side of. Originally the Reverend was the result of conversation over a few drinks with a friend of mine (yep pete that’s you) who came up with the genesis of the character. At first to me he just sounded like a typical religious zealot turned killer and felt a little stereotyped. As I sat down to flesh out the character I decided to take him on a much more emotionally journey in the book. I was always wanted the core of the Reverend to be that of an ordinary man who saw the world ‘differently’ after what he had been through. He had locked within him a side to his character that was capable of extreme violence a side he had kept it under lock and key from his early teenage years. It is something that the spin off Comic featuring the Reverend will explore more of.
When it came to describing the Reverend in the book I left his description purposely vague. Of course that may be fine when you’re asking people to use their imagination to fill in the blanks but not really that much help when asking an artist to draw the character in the novel adaptation.
Personally I think Steve’s done an amazing job on his final character sketch as I never a clear idea in my head what the Reverend would look like it. The things we did work on was what I did know.
This is what Steve came up with. You will see more of the Reverend in issue 2 and in the spin off The Reverend: Wrath of God, which is in development at the moment.
Unseen Shadows 